Fiber cement panels, also known as fiber cement boards have been used in the elaboration of stay in place molds useful in the construction of concrete structures. In general terms, two fiber cement panels are vertically positioned and held together in order to create an internal cavity intended to be filled with liquid concrete mixture at the construction site.
The real challenge in the manufacture and use of said molds is to maintain both fiber cement panels held together firmly and to obtain a highly internal pressure resistance at the internal cavity of the form.
In most instances, said fiber cement panels hare held together by means of vertical and horizontal structural components which, are attached internally or externally to the said panels, debilitating the whole structure. Said external components complicate the construction process, requiring external supports in order to counteract or balance the internal pressure created once the liquid cement mixture is poured inside the mold. Similarly, said external components difficult the alignment and proper connection of individual molds, as required in the formation of larger structures.
On the other hand, the use of complicated components assembled through the width of the fiber boards and passing along its internal cavity compromise the firmness and stability of the mold and the strength of the structure constructed with said mold. In the internal section of the mold, said structures occupy a large area of the internal cavity and thus, represents an obstruction that avoid the uniform contact of the liquid concrete mixture, which results in the formation of a non-monolithic, weak concrete structure. On the other hand, regarding the external section of the mold, once the concrete structure is made, it is required to eliminate the external section of such components, which means additional work that can negatively affect the interior of the constructed structure.
Thus, there is a need of stay in place fiber cement molds comprising a holding unit or spacer element, easy to manage, friendly to insert mechanical and electrical construction features and particularly designed to increase the stability of the mold, capable of allow a uniform dispersion of internal pressure of the liquid mixture and to allow the uniform contact of the liquid cement mixture in order to provide concrete structures with excellent strength and resistance.